The Divine Guarantee: Established, Anointed, and Sealed

The Divine Guarantee: Established, Anointed, and Sealed

2Cor.1:21-22 (KJB): “Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.”

When the Apostle Paul wrote his second letter to the Corinthians, he was a man under fire. His integrity had been called into question because he had changed his travel plans. His critics in Corinth were quick to label him as fickle, suggesting that if his word regarding a simple visit was unreliable, then perhaps the Gospel he preached was equally shaky. It is against this backdrop of personal accusation and pastoral concern that Paul delivers one of the most profound descriptions of Christian security found in the New Testament.

Paul does not respond to his critics by merely defending his own character; rather, he redirects their gaze toward the character of God. He argues that while men may fail and plans may change, the work that God performs in the believer is fixed and final. In a city like Corinth—a bustling hub of trade, law, and commerce—Paul uses the language of the legal and financial world to explain why a saint can never be "un-saved".

The Foundation of Our Stability

Stablished upon 'the faith'

Stablished upon 'the faith'

For what purpose did Paul receive grace and apostleship? For the obedience to the faith. In Romans, his intention is to impart this to those believers so that they may be established. Now, it's crucial to understand: the faith has already been established and cannot be altered. The Book of Romans states its truths. You can’t change it. Romans says what it says, and it did so long before you got here. It is firmly rooted and established. Our responsibility as a believer is to get your faith in line with what has been imparted, made known, and established for us.

Paul clearly tells us that we are to be established in the faith. THE faith! How many denominations are there? One. Certainly not. There are thousands! Well, something is terribly wrong! When you have several Christians and each of them have a different belief, there’s something clearly wrong, because the principles in Romans, and the rest of Paul’s epistles, have been established, written, and taught for two millennia. Paul's ministry was concluded before 70 A.D., approximately 1,950 years ago. This disparity among various denominations is shameful, isn't it? Despite this duration of time, numerous Christian denominations exist. Ask about baptism, and you’ll receive several different doctrines. Inquire how to gain forgiveness or justification with God, and you’ll get several unique answers. Why is there such difference?

DM#3: Established by a Spiritual Gift

Doctrine of the Mysteries #3

Rom 1:11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;

Established by a Spiritual Gift

The ‘spiritual gift’ that Paul was to impart upon the church at Rome was not the kind of miraculous powers that operated in the early church under the apostleship of the 12. Miracles had a specific purpose in the Jewish church at that time. Like the miracles that Jesus did, God’s power through the 12-apostles was to confirm to Jews that they operated under the ministry and blessing of God. Remember, Jews required signs for this very purpose, Joh 4:48; 1Cor 1:22.

The 4 Foundational Cornerstones of the Christian Faith

The 4 Foundational Cornerstones of the Christian Faith

ROMANS is the foundation book in Paul’s epistles. It is the book that firstly, establishes 'the faith', the doctrine that provides us with a fundamental knowledge of God's will and purpose for us as grace believers today, and secondly, that 'stablishes' a grace believer, meaning that it lays a foundation of truth, or principle, that helps us to be grounded and stable in our faith, and guides our walk to complement Gods will and purpose for us, not only here on earth, now, but also in the life to come, our heavenly destination as the Body of Christ.

If one takes a step back from the details in the Roman epistle, and looks at the contents from an overview perspective, one will see four key principles emerge. These four key principles are of great importance. As the title of this post suggests, they are the four cornerstones that keep the foundation of our faith stable. Without any one of these cornerstones, our Christian faith will be unstable and ineffective. Anything that we build upon this foundation will be shaky and problematic, and our growth in the doctrine of 'the faith', will be hindered, weakened, or even completely stunted. Needless to say, recognizing these four key foundational principles, and gaining an intimate knowledge of them, are crucial.

The Book of Romans: Our Spiritual Establishment and Solid Foundation

Romans is a foundational book, providing a believer with the fundamental doctrine of salvation, justification, and positional sanctification through the cross of Christ. Yet, the more I read it, the more I see how the truth it presents is structured to detach and separate us from this world, and prepare us to receive a mystery revelation regarding God's plans for our redemption, to the glory of Jesus Christ. 

We are only officially informed of the details of this mystery, in other letters, and in particular, that of Ephesians, but even in Romans, Paul lays out in our doctrine, details that are aimed at getting our minds and focus off of this world and its vanity, and set on the faith that there is something greater ahead, a mystery that is going to be revealed, and that cannot compare to what we currently have here.

So, Romans is meant to draw us away from this world, and activate our faith, so that we can see what God has planned for us from before the foundations of this world (Eph.1:4). Let's have a look at some key statements and verses that prove this point.

The Journey: Part 13 - Established in the Doctrine

Start here at the Introduction: The Journey Begins

The Journey: Part 13 - Established in the Doctrine

The purpose of Romans to Galatians is to establish our faith according to Paul's gospel. Notice how the book of Romans ends,

Rom.16:25 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,

Romans to Galatians is about establishing you. It has to do with laying the foundation of your faith. It's to take your faith and to establish it according to Paul's gospel, and this is in accordance to the commandment of the everlasting God. God has commanded all men to be in obedience of faith to what He has made known,

Rom.16:26 But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:

THE FAITH: A Form of Sound Doctrine

What is "THE FAITH "

Col.2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: 7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in THE FAITH, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. 8 Beware lest any man spoil you [corrupting THE FAITH] through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

Paul uses the phrase, "THE FAITH", to identify the working of an independent, living truth, existing as a foundation, in the heart of the believer. THE FAITH is in simple terms, the Bible, the Word of God, embedded in the heart of the believer. However, in a more accurate definition, THE FAITH is not all the Bible, but rather, a "specific set of doctrine" from within the Bible. What is more, the "specific set of doctrine", as foundational truth in the heart, is determined by the dispensation in which one lives. Let me explain.